One of the very first serial verb patterns you meet is 去 (qù, "go") or 来 (lái, "come") followed straight by another verb: 我去买菜 ("I'm going to buy groceries"), 你来帮我 ("come help me"). English forces a "to" between the motion and the goal — "go to buy," "come to help" — but Chinese uses nothing at all. 去/来 sits first, the purpose verb follows immediately, and the "to" simply disappears. Because it shows up in the most basic conversations ("let's go eat," "come sit"), it is worth drilling until it feels automatic.
去/来 + verb: the purpose reading
Put a motion verb in front of another verb and the second verb is read as the purpose of the motion — the reason you're going or coming.
我去买菜。
wǒ qù mǎi cài
I'm going (out) to buy groceries. (informal) — 去 + 买, no 'to' between them.
你来帮我一下，好吗？
nǐ lái bāng wǒ yíxià, hǎo ma?
Come give me a hand, would you? (informal) — 来 + 帮, 'come (to) help.'
我们去看电影吧！
wǒmen qù kàn diànyǐng ba!
Let's go see a movie! (informal) — the classic 'go do X' invitation.
妈妈去接孩子了。
māma qù jiē háizi le
Mom's gone to pick up the kids. (neutral) — the purpose (接孩子) follows 去 directly.
Notice the direction each verb encodes: 去 means the action happens away from the speaker (you leave to do it), while 来 means it happens toward the speaker (someone approaches to do it). Choosing between them is really about where you stand relative to the action.
快来吃饭，菜凉了！
kuài lái chī fàn, cài liáng le!
Come eat, the food's getting cold! (informal) — 来 because you're calling someone toward you.
来 as "let me" — offering to do something
A very idiomatic use: 我来 + verb offers to take on a task yourself, roughly English "let me (do it)." It's how you volunteer at a dinner table or a meeting.
这个我来做，你休息吧。
zhège wǒ lái zuò, nǐ xiūxi ba
Let me handle this one — you take a break. (informal) — 来 signals 'I'll step up and do it.'
我来介绍一下，这是我同事小李。
wǒ lái jièshào yíxià, zhè shì wǒ tóngshì Xiǎo Lǐ
Let me introduce everyone — this is my colleague Xiao Li. (neutral) — 来 volunteers the action.
Two positions: 去买 and 买去
The purpose verb usually follows 去/来, but colloquially the motion verb can also trail the whole verb phrase: 我买菜去 ("I'm off to buy groceries"). This trailing 去 has a casual, "I'm heading out to…" ring to it.
| Position | Example | Feel |
|---|---|---|
| 去/来 first (default) | 我去买菜 | neutral, always correct |
| 去/来 trailing | 我买菜去 | colloquial, "off to…" |
我买菜去，一会儿就回来。
wǒ mǎi cài qù, yíhuìr jiù huílai
I'm off to get groceries — back in a bit. (informal) — 去 trails the whole phrase 买菜.
他上楼睡觉去了。
tā shàng lóu shuìjiào qù le
He's gone upstairs to sleep. (informal) — trailing 去 + sentence-final 了, a very natural spoken shape.
The one thing you may not do is split the object away from its verb by wedging 去 in the middle — the object stays with its verb whether 去 leads or trails.
Not 为了 for this simple purpose
English "in order to" tempts learners toward 为了 (wèile), but 为了 is a heavier "for the sake of / in order to" that introduces a whole reasoned goal, not the light "go do X" of daily errands. For everyday purpose, plain 去/来 is what natives use.
我去银行取钱。
wǒ qù yínháng qǔ qián
I'm going to the bank to get some cash. (neutral) — light, everyday purpose: just 去 + verb.
Common Mistakes
1. Reaching for 为了 for a simple errand. 为了 is bookish and over-heavy for "go buy," "come help."
❌ 我为了买菜去商店。
Overwrought — sounds like 'for the purpose of buying groceries I go to the store.' Just say 我去商店买菜.
✅ 我去商店买菜。
wǒ qù shāngdiàn mǎi cài
I'm going to the store to buy groceries. — plain 去 + verb.
2. Inserting a connector between 去/来 and the verb. No 和, no 然后, no "to."
❌ 我们去和看电影。
Incorrect — nothing joins 去 and 看; 和 links nouns only.
✅ 我们去看电影。
wǒmen qù kàn diànyǐng
We're going to see a movie. — 去 + 看, directly.
3. Splitting the object from its verb with 去. Keep verb and object together; 去 leads or trails, never wedges in.
❌ 我买去东西。
Incorrect — 去 can't sit between 买 and its object. It's 去买东西 or 买东西去.
✅ 我去买东西。
wǒ qù mǎi dōngxi
I'm going to buy things. — 去 in front, object with its verb.
4. Wrong direction verb. 来 pulls the action toward the speaker; 去 pushes it away. Calling someone over to you needs 来.
❌ 快去吃饭！
Odd when calling someone over to eat with you — pulling them toward you needs 来, not 去.
✅ 快来吃饭！
kuài lái chī fàn!
Come eat! — 来 because the action is toward the speaker.
Key Takeaways
- 去/来 + verb expresses purpose — "go/come (to) do" — with no "to" and no connector: 去买菜, 来帮我.
- 去 = action away from the speaker; 来 = action toward the speaker. Pick by where you stand.
- 我来 + verb idiomatically means "let me (do it)" — a way to volunteer.
- The motion verb can trail the phrase colloquially: 买菜去 "off to buy groceries" — but never split the object from its verb.
- Save 为了 for genuinely reasoned goals; everyday errands take plain 去/来.
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Start learning Chinese→Related Topics
- Serial Verb Constructions (连动句)HSK 2 — In a 连动句, one subject performs two or more verbs in a row with no conjunction between them — and their order mirrors the real-world sequence of events: 坐车回家, 去买东西, 开门进来.
- 来 / 去 as Full Verbs (Come / Go)HSK 1 — As main verbs, 来 (come) and 去 (go) are anchored to the speaker — 来 is motion toward me, 去 is motion away — and the destination follows directly with no word for 'to': 你来, 我去学校, 他明天来北京.
- Directional 来/去 with Verbs (进来, 上去)HSK 2 — 来/去 attach after a path verb to show direction relative to the speaker: 进来 (come in) vs 进去 (go in), 上来 (come up) vs 上去 (go up). 来 = toward where I am; 去 = away from me. A preview of the directional-complement system.
- Means and Manner: 坐车去, 用筷子吃HSK 2 — When a serial verb states the means or manner of the main action, it comes first — 坐车去 'go by bus', 用筷子吃 'eat with chopsticks', 站着说话 'talk standing up' — matching the order in which the events actually unfold.